Tung Chee-hwa, the boss of Hong Kong Inc, has some new competition. Naturally we don't mean real slug it out in the political ring type of competition, we refer only to the increasing popularity of the title of chief executive.
Turns out Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce director Eden Woon has gone up in the world, by consensus of the chamber's general committee. We're not sure, but we imagine that decision might have been reached by the apparently democratic way of doing things, called voting.
But then again, having heard a few whispers about the former United States Air Force colonel's sometimes authoritarian style around the office, you never know. Anyway, Dr Woon assured Lai See he had not mounted some sort of coup d'etat either on the salary or the status front, saying his new title of chief executive officer simply made things easier. 'Director is one of those terms, people don't understand whether I am a director on a board, whether I'm a director of a department or what my responsibilities are,' he explained on the phone from somewhere in China last week. 'Internationally it makes more sense.' His new title also hauls into place what look to be a string of either demotions or promotions for the various people below him, transforming former directors of operations, business policy and certification into deputy chief executives.
But one which caught our eye was Eva Chow Tsz-wa, formerly chief for international business, who is now director of international business. What's the bet she was mistaken for the good doctor's boss a few too many times on the road? We expect international chambers will now recognise the chamber's chain of command.
Between lines: An eagle-eyed Lai See reader discovered an interesting juxtaposition of news and advertising placement. A large advertisement on Page 3 announced that Royal & Sun Alliance International Financial Services had changed its name to Friends Provident International.
Meanwhile, a tiny news brief on the bottom of Page 9 announced that Britain's financial watchdog had just slapped insurer Royal & Sun Alliance with a record fine of GBP1.35 million (about HK$16.33 million) as part of the Financial Services Authority's probe into mis-selling in the pension industry.
Anticipating someone happier than the Andersen-turned-Accenture consultants, we called the general manager of the new Friends Provident International, David Gervais.
